Trust
by PFTones3482
Summary: Takes place after Northwest Mansion Mystery. Pacifica gets in trouble for standing up to her parents and realizes that she can't stay in her house anymore. But where else does she have to go? Rated T for child abuse. One-shot. I'm still bad at summaries.


**Soooooo I'm not sure if people have done anything like this, so I wrote a thing. Child abuse in here, so if that triggers you, please don't read. **

**I don't own Gravity Falls.**

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GENERAL POV

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The heavy oaken doors slammed shut to the public, the sound ringing through the massive mansion and falling on the ears of Pacifica Northwest, who was enthralled by the stories of one of the butlers. He was surprisingly interesting, and Pacifica had nearly forgotten that a mere two hours ago, she had defied her parents and let the common townsfolk into their home.

She flinched as the doors closed and braced herself for what would come next.

"PACIFICA ELISE NORTHWEST. GET YOUR BUTT OVER HERE!"

The girl winced and looked to the butler, who she didn't even know the name of. "Sorry, sir, I have to go," she murmured, casting her gaze to the floor.

The butler studied the young heiress and nodded. "Of course, miss. You know where to find us if you need us," he assured her, thinking that perhaps he had misjudged the tween.

Pacifica gave him a small smile and walked down the hall towards where her parents were standing, arms crossed and gazes deadly. The girl gulped and folded her hands behind her back, keeping her gaze lowered to the tile.

"Yes, father?" she said quietly, refusing to meet his intense stare.

"Young lady," the man hissed. "Look at me."

Pacifica bit her cheek and kept her eyes on the ground, her shoulders tensing. She had never defied her parents before that night, and she was honestly terrified of what was going to happen. They had been mad at her before, but she had never seen them quite this angry.

"Look. At. Me."

Pacifica felt her lower lip tremble. "No."

The hand slapped her across the face so hard that the girl wasn't even sure she had actually been hit at first. But mere seconds later, her cheek flushed red and burned with pain. She swallowed and raised her eyes, glowering at her father.

"What?" she asked, trying to rid herself of the lump in her throat.

"How _dare _you disobey us," Preston Northwest growled, his eyes flashing with anger. "You humiliated the family name, ruined us for everything we ever have been!"

"Ruined you?" Pacifica choked out. "You're kidding, right? If we hadn't let the townsfolk in-"

_Ding ding ding_

Pacifica stared at the bell in shock, moving her eyes from it to her father's face and back again. Gritting her teeth, the girl stomped her foot down, clicking her heel against the floor. "No. You'll listen this time! You and mom were wrong! Keeping the townsfolk out would have killed us in the end!"

She tensed as the hand came down, slapping her again in the same spot but harder, and tears sprang to her eyes as she forced herself not to cry out. It would only make him angrier.

"Pacifica," her mother muttered. "You're cut from your credit card until you can learn to behave like a Northwest should behave."

The blonde bit her tongue. "Fine," she mumbled, crossing her arms over each other and looking away. "I'll live."

Her father grunted in the back of his throat and she squeezed her eyes shut tightly, bracing herself. Surprisingly, no hand hit her.

"Young lady," he said, his voice tight with anger, his fists clenched at his sides. "You are not allowed to leave the house. You will not socialize with your friends or any others until you learn to behave."

"And if I decide to leave?" Pacifica snapped, whipping her head around and fighting back the salty water in her eyes.

Her mother snickered. "You're pathetic dear. No one would take you in, not when you act like that. Seriously, how many friends do you _actually _have?"

Pacifica raised a finger and then slowly lowered it again, her cheeks flushing with shame. Her parents laughed and Preston wagged the bell in the girls face. "Room. Now."

Lower lip trembling, Pacifica ran for the stairs, shoving past the stunned butlers and maids and sprinting for her room, her skirt hiked up in her hands. She slammed the door shut behind her and sank to the floor, burying her face in her hands and finally letting her tears roll down her cheeks.

She wasn't sure how long she sat there before she heard the soft click come from lock on the door. Spinning around and standing up in one swift move, Pacifica grabbed at the doorknob and twisted anxiously, only to find that it was locked.

"No," she whimpered, letting her palms rest flat on the wooden pink slats. Her voice hitched and she pounded her fists against the oak, practically sobbing. "No, no, no! Not again! Please! Please, mom! Dad! I can't stay locked in here!"

Pacifica choked on her own breath and sank to her knees, leaning her forehead on the door. She gulped and brushed away the tears on her face. "Not again," she hiccupped.

The girl shuddered and retreated to her bed, practically ripping the dress off and pulling on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, an outfit her parents had forbidden her to wear in public but one that she adored because of the comfort. She sank down onto her downy bed and buried her head in her knees, shoulders shaking.

She tilted her head to stare at her window, sneering at it in disgust. It was covered by pink lacy curtains that fluttered in the breeze, but if one looked closely enough they would be able to see that there were security cameras pointed at it. She was a prisoner in her own room, and no one knew it.

Pacifica sighed and rested her chin on her knees, brushing away stray tears. Her parents were right. No one actually cared enough to take her in. Dipper had only come back that night because Mabel had been in the mansion, and though Mabel was sweet, Pacifica knew the girl wasn't all that fond of her. And Stan hated her guts.

She thought of the girls she hung out with and scowled. They were disgusting, shallow brats. She wasn't much better, of course, but ever since the golf incident with the Pines twins, Pacifica had realized that she treated people pretty badly. She had been trying desperately to fix it.

The girl looked up in startled surprise as her closet doorknob rattled and a maid stepped out, looking around anxiously. Pacifica sat straight up, her mouth opening and closing, and the woman put a finger to her lips, beckoning the girl forward.

Pacifica hesitated only a moment before grabbing a stash of cash from under her bed, a deep purple sweatshirt from her desk, and a pair of sneakers out of the closet. She tiptoed after the maid into the closet and stared in surprise at the secret door that led into a hallway.

"What-?"

The woman shushed her and drew her forward, shutting the secret passage door behind them. "Not much time, miss. We, the servants and I, we saw you stand up to your parents, and Alex told us that you took genuine interest in his life tonight."

Pacifica hopped after the woman, struggling to pull her sneakers on and at the same time keep up with the surprisingly quick woman. "Alex?" she huffed, nearly falling on her face.

The maid wrapped a gentle hand around her arm and they stopped, giving Pacifica time to tie her sneakers. "Yes, miss. The one you were talking to tonight before your parents called you over. We thought it was very brave of you to stand up to them, and none of us think you should be treated how you were."

Pacifica winced and double knotted her laces. "Well…it's not the first time," she muttered.

"I know, honey," the woman said softly. "But tonight was much worse. We wanted to help you get out, at least for a while. Do you have somewhere you can go?"

Halfway to standing up, Pacifica froze and gulped, brushing her hair from her eyes and shrugging into her sweatshirt. "I…I don't know," she finally admitted, cursing mentally as her voice cracked.

The woman smiled and gently tugged the girl forward. "I think you do," she intoned softly. "We were all discussing it, and we think you know exactly where to go."

Pacifica raised her eyes to stare at the woman as they stopped outside a door. Pacifica could smell wet grass from the earlier rain shower, and knew they were almost out of the house. "Do you think I should?" she whispered.

The maid placed a gentle hand on Pacifica's cheek, her cold fingers chasing away the heat of embarrassment and pain. The tween found herself leaning in to the comforting touch and she sighed, shutting her eyes for a moment. "I think you should, sweetie. Every guard and servant is aware that you are leaving. None of them will stop you, and if you decide to come back, they will all help you get back in unnoticed. Good luck."

Pacifica acted on a whim and hugged the woman around the waist quickly before pushing out the door and sprinting for the road, trying not to look back as she realized she hadn't even asked the woman's name.

Her sneakers skidded in the mud as she rounded the corner and stared the gates down, her heart pounding. One of the men that stood near the gate spotted her and started whistling innocently, leaning back and kicking open a nearly invisible door just next to the massive iron doors.

Pacifica smiled gratefully at him and dove through the door, tripping and tumbling down the hill. When she hit the bottom, the girl paused for a moment, catching her breath and trying to make sure she hadn't broken any bones during her fall. Seemingly in one piece, the girl pushed herself to her feet, double checked that her money was still in her pocket, and began trudging through the woods.

On her first step, she winced, cursing as her ankle flared in pain. She tested her weight on it, noting that it obviously wasn't broken, probably just sprained a little. She gritted her teeth and moved forward, her left cheek throbbing almost as badly as her ankle. Pacifica wasn't quite sure why it hurt so much, but she ignored it and found a path, glancing back only once before she ventured into the forest.

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Stan Pines sighed and sank down into the kitchen chair with the newspaper and a glass of root beer, having finally gotten the twins to bed after the Northwest party. He still couldn't quite understand why they had gone, but Dipper and Mabel had both protested and told him that Pacifica wasn't as bad as she seemed. The fact that Dipper had vouched for the snotty brat made Stanford think that they were probably telling the truth.

He had only managed to get through the headline before a tentative knock sounded on the back door. The man frowned and looked up, glancing at the clock on the microwave as he pushed back in his chair.

"It's almost one am, who on earth is here?" the Grunkle mumbled, shuffling to the door and pulling it open.

His frown morphed into a look of surprise as he took in the sight of Pacifica Northwest standing on his doorstep, her head tilted down and her hands clasped behind her back, blonde hair tumbling in knots around her shoulders. "Pacifica?" he grunted in surprise.

The girl didn't look up, merely nodded. "Sorry it's so late," she said softly, the cracking of her voice making it obvious that she had been crying. "May I come in?"

Having never heard such polite words come from the tween, Stan was at a loss for what to say. So instead, he stepped aside and gestured inwards. The blonde stepped inside and it was then that Stan realized that, not only was she wearing very grubby clothing, but she was covered in mud, twigs, and was limping.

Despite everything the girl had said and done to him in the past, Stan Pines immediately pulled out a chair. "Why don't you uh…sit down. Do you want anything to drink….or something?" he asked awkwardly as Pacifica situated herself in the chair, her hair still covering her cheeks.

She clasped her hands in her lap tightly and shook her head. "No, thank you," she whispered, shocking the man further. "Are um…are Mabel and Dipper home?"

Stan hesitated. "Well, yeah. They're in bed."

"Oh," Pacifica said dejectedly, looking up at the clock.

As she did so, her hair fell back to her shoulders and Stan stiffened, his eyes hardening as he took in the dark bruise that was growing on the girl's cheek. "Who…what happened?" he asked sternly, his eyes flashing.

Pacifica's hand shot to her cheek and she grimaced, looking back down. "It's nothing," she murmured.

Flashing back on what Dipper had said about Pacifica's parents and the bell, Stan pieced the puzzle together and clenched his fists. "One second."

He started for the stairs, pausing in the doorway. "Would you uh…rather talk to Mabel or Dipper?"

Pacifica shrugged, looking sideways at the con artist. "Doesn't matter."

Stan nodded and practically ran up the stairs to the attic, nearly tripping over Waddles as he rounded the corner and pushed open the attic door.

Dipper almost flung the journal at his Grunkle in startled surprise, his flashlight clattering to the floor. Mabel muttered something in her sleep and rolled over, resuming her snoring, and Dipper flailed around for a moment as he attempted to regain some understanding of what was happening.

"Grunkle Stan!" he hissed, putting a hand over his heart and looking remarkably like an old man. "Geez, what the heck?"

He stopped as he saw the look on his relative's face and frowned. "What? What is it?"

Stan hesitated, glancing behind him. "Dipper...did Pacifica happen to tell you why she followed what her parents said when they rang the bell?"

Dipper frowned and hopped from his bed, retrieving the journal from where it had fallen to the ground. "No. Why?"

"She's downstairs."

The book tumbled out of Dipper's hands once more and he grumbled in irritation, scooping it back up before turning to Stan. "Pacifica? Is downstairs? It's almost one am, what is she doing here?"

Grunkle Stan lowered his voice and looked at Dipper in concern. "That's what I need you to find out, kid. Come on."

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Pacifica glanced up as Dipper stumbled into the kitchen, taking in his slightly disheveled appearance with mild amusement before remembering that she probably looked worse.

Dipper stopped in front of the girl and leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms and studying the misjudged blonde. "What are you doing here?" he asked, though not rudely.

She gave a thin smile. "I uh…I just needed to get away from home. I couldn't think of anywhere else to go."

Dipper raised an eyebrow, lowering his arms to his sides. "What about your friends?"

Pacifica snorted, shaking her head and looking up, revealing the nasty bruise on her cheek. "What friends?" she whispered.

Dipper's jaw dropped and he moved forward. Before he realized what he was doing, he was gently touching his cold fingers to her cheek. She winced as pain flared through her skin but relaxed against his touch.

The twin stared at the bruise for a long moment before meeting Pacifica's gaze. "Did….does your dad…?"

He couldn't finish the sentence, but he didn't have to. Pacifica hiccupped and lowered her eyes back to the ground. Dipper swore softly, surprising the girl, and walked away for a moment, forcing himself to keep calm. Finally, he turned around, holding out his hands to her helplessly. "I didn't realize…it was that bad," he choked out, looking guilty. "If I had known, I would never-"

"Shut up, Dipper," Pacifica muttered. "It's nothing new, and I knew it would happen if I disobeyed them. It was just…worse this time, since I kept standing up for myself. The servants helped me get out and I came here because I'm so pathetic I have nowhere else to go and no one else who would help me."

She shook her head and stood up, shoving her hands into her sweatshirt pocket. "Never mind. I'll get out of here."

"Nu-uh," said a soft, feminine voice. Dipper and Pacifica turned around to see a sleepy Mabel in the doorway, Waddles at her feet. The girl crossed the room and studied Pacifica for a moment before wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Come on. You can sleep in our room, if you want. I'll share a bed with Dipper, so you can have the bed to yourself."

Pacifica looked from one twin to the other and, seeing the sincerity in their eyes, gave a wobbly smile. "Thanks, you two. That um…that means a lot," she mumbled, glancing at the floor.

She glanced up and smiled for real, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders as she realized that she had finally found people she could trust.

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**I'm sooooooo happy with Pacifica's character development omg. I hate to say it, but I may ship Dipcifica…..and yes, the one butler was named Alex because of Alex Hirsch. **

**Reviews?**


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